We
are proud to share with all of you this special performance of the PFC
Band Live in Curitiba, Brazil. This one night of music created our first
PFC music school in Brazil that will give the gift of music education
for generations. As Grandpa Elliott and Clarence Bekker sing, "It's
been a long time coming but I know a change is gonna come..." Enjoy the
music and share this positive energy with everyone you meet!

Following
Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009, many Americans predicted the end
of racial inequality in the United States. But as black communities
continue to be torn apart by violence, America remains a country
divided. Taking cues from their forefathers in the 1950s, a new
generation of civil rights activists has emerged from the bloodshed,
determined to have their voices heard in the fight for racial equality.

​
"Witnesses say he was beaten from this side of the street all the way to
that side. He was screaming for help, but none of those animals
stopped"​,​ explains Tawanda Jones tearfully. Her brother Tyrone was
killed by police, in what she says was a ​​"brutal murder". Tawanda
believes her brother fell victim to a police force that routinely
discriminates against black lives: ​​"There's no justice, it's just us.
We need to stick together and dismantle this corrupt system"​​

The
movement however is not just about changing policing: it is pursuing
real reform in gang-tormented neighbourhoods, as often the most
dangerous violence comes from within these communities. For example in
the South Side of Chicago, brutal gang violence is a part of daily life:
it is easier for many young black men to get a gun than a job, and on
average someone is shot every three hours. Campaigners are fighting to
provide an alternative to the epidemic of gang warfare, determined to
stop the violence from within. ​​"They want to close down schools, they
don't want kids to read, don't want them to learn...but that's what's
going to curb the violence"​,​ explains one woman.

​​"I think what we're seeing is the birth of a mass movement."​

ABC Australia - Ref. 6654

Journeyman
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films, exploring the burning issues of today. We represent stories from
the world's top producers, with brand new content coming in all the
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journalism covering any global subject you can imagine wanting to know
about.

San Francisco, Dec. 13, 2015 – In what amounts to an
improbable plaintiff victory, a federal jury unanimously
found several Pelican Bay State Prison guards liable for
retaliating against a prisoner in solitary confinement for
successfully exercising his first amendment right to file a
prior lawsuit against other guards. In the case, I was the
prisoner plaintiff alleging that after favorably litigating
a near decade‐long federal suit challenging my placement in
Pelican Bay’s harsh isolation unit as a “gang associate,”
the guard defendants conspired to retaliate and did
retaliate against me.

The guards’ unlawful conduct, I claimed, was also spurred by my
participation in peaceful civil disobedience actions that included
the 2011 and 2013 California prisoners’ hunger strikes as well as
my authoring articles
critical of the department’s solitary housing policies and
advocating for the scaling up of prisoners’ engagement in the
public political process.

The retaliation at issue in the case was exacted in various
forms. Specifically, I accused the guards of stripping me naked,
trashing my cell, improperly taking legal documents relevant to my
prior lawsuit (ongoing at the time), vocalizing threats about
pursuing lawsuits against department employees and falsifying a
disciplinary report with a gang nexus intended to keep me in
solitary longer.
In defending against the lawsuit, the defendants – all guards
assigned to the gang squad at Pelican Bay – denied the retaliatory
accusations and argued that they were merely “following orders”
and “standard procedures.”

On the stand, however, the factual testimony, spurious safety
issues, ignorance asserted of the regulations governing their acts
and rationalizations trotted in support of their defense contained
gripping inconsistencies, inherent incredibility and were
ultimately unpersuasive – at best.

Following the parties’ decision to rest their respective cases, a
gender‐balanced jury of eight – acting in their fact‐finding role
– retreated to deliberate for two days. After considering the
evidence and counsels’ arguments, the unanimous verdict returned
was against several of the guard defendants.

The jury saw plenty of evidence to convince them that the guards’
actions were not the bumbling creature of ignorance and error –
but, rather, the well‐designed and malicious strategy to retaliate
against me for pursuing constitutionally protected legal action in
court contesting my placement in isolation.

While prisons are ultimately about public safety, this case lifts
the cloak of secrecy to provide a rare window for the public to
see how the department’s Institutional Gang Investigators (IGI)
violate the public’s trust and abuse the practice of solitary
confinement in which the state continues to engage.

The large number of prisoners released from isolation since the
class action Ashker v. Brown was settled also reflects the IGI’s
heavy handed influence in placing and retaining prisoners there
under the now discredited and empty rhetoric of safety and
security.

There is also a compelling underlying truth here, I believe. What
was proven at trial is necessarily emblematic of a deeper
pathology existing within the California Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, one pointing unerringly to the sheer
inefficiency of the “leadership” of the agency’s administration,
and the public frankly deserves better.

This is particularly so when prison officials willingly violate
the constitution and refuse to remedy those violations, instead
choosing to engage in protracted litigation – which only results
in greater cost for taxpayers.

This alone is basis to ratchet up the tempo in the growing
drum‐beat calling for substantive reforms to the state’s
correctional system.

The
large number of prisoners released from isolation since the
class action Ashker v. Brown was settled also reflects the IGI’s
heavy handed influence in placing and retaining prisoners there
under the now discredited and empty rhetoric of safety and
security.

The plaintiff’s prevailing case was presented at trial by the
outstanding team from the WilmerHale law firm, attorneys Randall
Lee, Matt Benedetto and Katie Moran. They were assisted in its
preparation by Jessica Lewis and Tiffany Tejada‐Rodriguez as well
as other incredible support staff that contributed to the
favorable outcome.Send our brother some love and light: Jesse Perez, K‐42186,
PBSP A5-106, P.O. Box 7500, Crescent City CA 95532.

Tuesday, 15 December 2015

A
former Oklahoma City police officer is facing life in prison for the
serial rapes of African-American women. An all-white jury convicted
Daniel Holtzclaw last week of rape and other crimes against eight of the
13 women who accused him. All 13 victims testified during the trial,
each with similar stories of rape, sexual assault, and threats if they
did not comply with Holtzclaw’s demands. Holtzclaw targeted them during
traffic stops and interrogations, forcing them into sexual acts in his
police car or in their homes. Prosecutors say he deliberately preyed on
vulnerable black women from low-income neighborhoods. He was reportedly
under investigation by the Oklahoma City police sex crimes unit six
weeks before his final crime. That means Holtzclaw assaulted half of the
women he was convicted of attacking while under investigation. While
Holtzclaw’s conviction may bring his victims some relief, the case has
raised questions about whether it’s part of a wider problem of devaluing
African-American lives, in this case African-American women. Despite
the charges and ultimate convictions of serial rape, the Holtzclaw
prosecution got far less corporate media attention than other criminal
trials. We hear from some of his victims and speak with three guests:
Kimberlé Crenshaw, law professor at UCLA and Columbia University and the
founder of the African American Policy Forum; and Candace Liger and
Grace Franklin, co-founders of OKC Artists for Justice, an Oklahoma
City-based advocacy group founded around the Holtzclaw case.

A
couple had been married for several years without a child. For the
purpose of companionship, they bought a Rottweiler puppy, named it
Hatchi and loved her like a child.

The
dog had access to all the rooms in the house. The puppy grew to become a
large, beautiful dog and had on several occasions saved d couples from
robbery. Hatchi was always faithful, loyal and defended its owners against any danger.

Seven
years later, the couple was blessed to have the long awaited son. They
were very happy with their new son and decreased the attention they had
been giving the dog. Hatchi felt neglected and began to get jealous of
the baby.

One
day
the couple left the baby sleeping peacefully in his cradle and went to
the terrace to prepare a roast. They were shocked as they were heading
to the nursery and saw Hatchi in the hallway with a bloody mouth,
wagging its tail.The
dog's owner thought the worst, pulled out a weapon and immediately
killed the dog. Rushed to the baby's room and found a beheaded snake
close to the baby. The owner begins to mourn and
exclaims I killed my faithful dog!How often have You misjudged people without finding out facts.The next time You are tempted to judge and condemn anyone remember thestory of a faithful dog Hatchi.

In
March 2015, Abu-Jamal was rushed to a hospital after collapsing from
near lethal blood sugar levels and renal failure. Even after treatment
for diabetes, he continued to suffer severe skin rashes and lesions over
much of his body as well as swelling of his arms and legs. His skin
developed a leatherlike appearance, and he had difficulty standing and
walking.

In August he was finally diagnosed with the hepatitis C virus, which impacts nearly 10,000 prisoners in Pennsylvania.

Despite
the diagnosis, prison officials refused to give Abu-Jamal a new
direct-acting anti-viral drug with a 90-95 percent cure rate for HCV.
The medication, manufactured by Gilead Sciences, comes with a hefty
price tag. At about $1,000 per pill, it costs $95,000 for a 12-week
course of treatment. Prison officials decided to hold off on treatment
until the final stages of the condition — in other words, when it would
be too late to save Mumia.

Speaking at a November meeting in
Philadelphia, Abu-Jamal’s attorney Robert Boyle noted that the cost of
the hospital care Mumia needed because the HCV went untreated was easily
double that expense.

For transportation from Philadelphia, call 215-724-1618 or email HepCcure4Mumiaallprisoners@gmx.com.

In New York call 212-330-8029.

If you are unable to get to Scranton, you can still show your support on Dec. 18 by calling:

Monday, 7 December 2015

In
recent years, Intolerance & religious, lingual & regional
extremism has been rising so fast in all corners of India. The movement
of peace, harmony & human rights is being weakened as an strategy of
communal forces, opportunist political leaders & selfish clerics.

In
December, 1992 after demolition of Babri Masjid when communal forces,
opportunist political leaders & selfish clerics were playing their
dirty game to spread hate among Hindus and Muslims to fulfill their own
political and monetary interests. India was burning,

At
that time, I was a young & devoted students leader in Aligarh
Muslim University, India. I was really very shocked to see the massive
declining of religious harmony & brotherhood. So I started a
reformist movement “Haiya Alal Falah Movement” on 12 December, 1992 just
after 6 days of Babri Masjid demolition in Ayodhya, Faizabad district
in Uttar Pradesh. “Haiya Alal Falah” is an Arabic slogan which means
“Come towards success & betterment” and for me in that burning time,
to strengthen communal harmony & social fabric was prime duty hence
I devoted myself in this noble cause.

My
efforts to foster peace, harmony, brotherhood & understanding were
highly appreciated by the common people of all religions who were poor
& educationally backward. Those poor & backward people of all
religions were being misguided, betrayed and misused by the traders of
hate. Naturally my efforts were highly criticized and attacked by the
extremists of all religions.

Now, I have
many unknown enemies. Every religious extremist and trader of hate is my
enemy and my life & dignity is at stake.

Social
activists are soft targets in India. Everyone is living in fear. Rising
of religious, lingual & regional intolerance is a great sign of
danger for humanity & democracy of Indian republic. Peace &
rights activists are being killed, threatened and framed in false
criminal cases.

A big conspiracy has been
taken place against me to assassinate my character and to stop my voice.
In 2012 a fake, false & fabricated F.I.R. Crime Number 1-218/2012
was lodged in Wagle Estate police station at Thane city in Maharashtra
under section 465, 468, 471, 420 0f I.P.C. & 66(K) of I.T. Act. All
the facts & contents of this F.I.R. are bogus like a false story.
This F.I.R. is a dirty attempt to malign my image and to spoil my social
and family life.

The role of police is
always seen as an ally of political leaders, mafias and capitalist. It
is a big threat to the human rights of all common people and activists.
Moreover the criminal justice system in India is not so effective. The
Indian government must think and act over this issue keeping in view
that the police is often use its powers so unfairly & dishonestly.
All police actions, complaints & complainants are not always right
similarly all accused are not also always wrong. Accused should not be
treated as a criminal by the police & lower courts. Human rights
violations, torture must be checked in police custody & in prison as
well.

On 13th of August, 2015, I was
arrested by the police ignoring all my pleas & clarifications from
my home at Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India and produced me before the
Thane court in Maharashtra on 15th of August, 2015 about 2000 kilometer
far away from my home town. 15th August is celebrated as Independence
day in India. The court sent me in police custody for 6 days where I
experienced severe human rights violations, humiliations and insults. On
21st August I was sent to the central prison, Thane as an accused of
the crime of cheating & forgery which I never committed. As a
prisoner, I experienced that all prisoners are not treated as human
being. Jail manual and other relating laws are only seen in the book
shelves but on the ground, they are not applied. On 18th of November,
2015, I was released on bail by the court. During this period of 98
days, I have been harassed mentally & physically. Not only me but my
family members, supporters & friends faced too much pain and grief.
Now, I have to prove my innocence in the Thane city court in
Maharashtra during trial. Crime Number 1-218/2012. Government of
Maharashtra State versus Mohd. Abdul Saeed Khan. God help me!

Inmate
seeks to block third trial in guard’s 1972 death

Albert Woodfox, the high-profile accused murderer from New
Orleans who’s fueled a national debate over solitary
confinement, is taking his case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
One of Woodfox’s attorneys, George Kendall, said Tuesday he
plans to file a request to the nation’s high court to hear the
case, nearly a month after a
federal appeals court ruled the inmate can be tried a
third time in the slaying of a prison guard. Woodfox’s request
will join the 10,000 petitions the Supreme Court receives each
year, some 80 of which are heard.
Also Tuesday, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals filed the
necessary paperwork to finalize its Nov. 9 decision that
overturned a
lower court judge’s sweeping ruling in June that sought to
free Woodfox and bar him from being retried.
Woodfox, 68, was twice convicted in the 1972 stabbing death of
Brent Miller, a guard at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at
Angola. Both convictions, in 1973 and 1998, were thrown out,
first due to Woodfox’s ineffective counsel and the next time,
because of racial disparities in the grand jury.
Woodfox has become a lightning rod in the controversy
surrounding solitary confinement, a practice opponents say is a
form of unconstitutional imprisonment generally defined as being
held alone in a cell for at least 23 hours a day. Having served
four decades, Woodfox is believed to be the longest-jailed
inmate in solitary in the U.S.

State officials have previously
challenged the description of Woodfox’s imprisonment as
solitary confinement, citing his access to television and
ability to converse with other inmates despite only being
allowed to leave his cell one hour a day.

Aaron Sadler, a spokesman for State Attorney General James
“Buddy” Caldwell, who is prosecuting Woodfox, said Tuesday he
can’t discuss the issue of solitary confinement because it’s the
subject of ongoing litigation.

In Woodfox’s petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys are
expected to argue that U.S. Middle District Court Judge James J.
Brady had appropriate authority when he ruled in June that the
inmate’s situation was so exceptional that a fair trial would be
impossible.

The unusual elements to Woodfox’s case include his advanced
age, faltering health, and the fact that many of the witnesses
to the killing for which he’s accused are dead, Brady found.

“The American trial assumes that a certain number of critical
witnesses are going to show up at the courthouse, raise their
right hands, testify and be subject to cross examination.
There’s no dispute anymore. That can’t happen in this case,”
Kendall said.

“The central, important role the jury plays is to look at the
witnesses ... and say, ‘Who do we believe and who do we not
believe?’ ” he said, adding that critical testimony should not
be delivered by actors reading a script in court.

Sadler said the state agrees with the 5th Circuit’s ruling last
month, which found the problem of dead witnesses would be best
addressed at retrial by a state court.

“This case,” wrote 5th Circuit Judge Carolyn King in the 2-1
decision with Judge Priscilla Owen, “does not present a
constitutional defect that cannot be cured at retrial.”

Welcome To My World

About Me

DARCY D= YOU MUST BELIEVE.STANDING UP FOR THE INNOCENT C.E.O
The United Kingdom resident champions causes of the voiceless, the powerless and the weak, particularly in North America. She campaigns for petitions on behalf of incarcerated human trafficking.